Category Archives: Thoughts

It’s been quite a while since I’ve posted anything new, and a large reason for that is we welcomed a baby girl to our family! Between pregnancy and being a new mom, there was just no time to focus on this site and write. But I’ve come to an interesting place in motherhood that is very relevant to this site: solid food. While formula wouldn’t necessarily have been kind to my lactose intolerance if I somehow managed to ingest it, it’s not nearly as concerning as starting my daughter on actual solid foods. I have numerous anaphylactic allergies (none of them to top-8 allergens). Because of these allergies, my daughter has a higher likelihood to having food allergies. And not necessarily the same ones I have. Just food allergies in general. So before I get too far into this article, some disclaimers:

Every baby is different. I’m not saying anyone should imitate how my husband and I are introducing solid foods to our baby. Talk to your pediatrician (as we spoke to ours).

Recent allergy studies indicate that introducing a baby to solid food early can help prevent allergies. This is not conclusive. Just the most recent study results. These things can always change again, but we’re working with what we have.

The American Academy of Pediatrics suggests introducing solid foods at six months of age. Again, talk with your pediatrician before making any decisions.

There are two things that terrify me about introducing my daughter to solid food: (1) that she’ll have an allergic reaction; and (2) that I’ll have an allergic reaction.

Taking those one at a time, there’s the concern that she’ll have an allergic reaction to something. I never want my daughter to have that scary experience of anaphylaxis. Never. I called my former pediatric allergist (who’s now mostly retired) to ask for advice. He first told me that I should talk to our pediatrician but also offered some general advice. He said that based on recent research, we should try to start introducing the baby to solids at four months old. He suggested waiting a full week before starting a new food (i.e. sweet potatoes week 1, butternut squash week 2, etc.). He also said that he would start with vegetables or fruits, not baby cereal. When we went to the baby’s four month appointment, we discussed this with our pediatrician. She agreed with what my former pediatric allergist suggested and agreed that the baby was ready to start solids. Both pediatricians let me know that it’s very rare for a baby have an anaphylactic reaction.

My second concern was having a reaction myself. Babies do this fun thing: spitting food back out at you. Our daughter is fairly proficient at it already. For food I’m not allergic to, it’s both cute and annoying. For food I’m allergic to, it’s highly concerning. We were giving her prune juice for a while to help with digestion (per pediatrician’s orders), and that was fine until she got me in the face with some she managed to spit out. Luckily, it was a completely manageable, small reaction. Most of my reactions to fruit are not that small and are significantly scarier. And one reaction isn’t necessarily like the next.

So what did we decide to do? We started solid foods at four months of age and are introducing a new food a week. Her first food was sweet potatoes. So far (two foods in), everything is going great! We decided to introduce vegetables first and are holding out on fruits until we go through most (if not all) of the vegetables on the “first foods” list our pediatrician gave us. I might buy a mask to wear for the fruits, but we’re still going to introduce her to them before six months.

We’re not going to keep her away from trying any food, except apples and celery (which she wouldn’t get until she was much older anyway). Those are my most reactive allergies, and we won’t keep them in the house. She might get them at her grandparents’ house in a controlled environment when she’s older, but not in our house and not now.

Ultimately, it’s still scary. What if she has a reaction? Even if anaphylactic reactions are rare for baby’s, the thought of it is still terrifying. Because there is still a chance, no matter how small. What if I have a reaction? I’ll be sure to keep my epi pen right next to me for things I react to, but anaphylaxis is not a pleasant experience. What if I accidentally scare my daughter away from liking fruit? Babies are surprisingly good at picking up on tension. What if I accidentally scare her with my own nervousness?

These questions and thoughts don’t just go away. I’m sure there are other parents out there thinking the same thing. What if…? This question really doesn’t help anything, but I can’t get it out of my mind. What if…? We’ll take every precaution. Follow every bit of research and advice. And as parents that’s all we can really do. Be as prepared as possible. So that’s what we’ll do.

I had a short Twitter exchange a week ago that I wanted to take a moment to share. The exchange was cordial, but it was telling. How so? We had two different experiences at the same bakery stand. When I went, everything appeared to be in line with the bakery’s allergy-friendly statements. When the other allergy-concerned Twitter user (@FoodAllergyBuzz) went, she noticed at least three errors.

Now would I go back to the bakery based on my experience? Yes. Because I had a great experience, and I definitely put some value in that. But would I be more cautious? Definitely. And as I said in my response: always ask questions. Double check ingredients in every product every time. It doesn’t matter how many times you’ve been to the same restaurant, always go over your allergies and ask questions. You don’t play with allergies. Caution is your friend.

I’m grateful that @FoodAllergyBuzz chimed in on my post. We’re a community. It’s our job to look out for each other. It’s what makes allergy blogs, social media, and websites (like AllergyEats) so important and valuable. If we each write based on our experience a more complete picture appears. It makes us safer. It makes people without allergies and restaurants more aware. So, thank you to @FoodAllergyBuzz for entering this particular conversation!

Hell’s Kitchen, MasterChef, Top Chef, Chopped, Iron Chef America, and many more. There are a lot of cooking shows on TV. And, honestly, I love watching quite a few of them. Many of these shows are quite popular; Hell’s Kitchen alone brings in a few million viewers every episode. And despite the drama in some of these shows, many of them do a great job of showing its viewers just how creative you can be with food and introducing new ingredients and flavor profiles.

But as someone with food allergies, I’d love to see an episode where the chefs need to be creative with food restrictions. Is this a case of a personal issue leading to some grumbling? Yes. Would I even think about such an episode if I didn’t have allergies? Unless someone else in my family had food allergies, probably not. But the fact is that I, along with an estimated fifteen (15) million other Americans, do.

There may be episodes out there that have their competitors handle food allergies as a challenge, but I don’t recall any. I know that there have been instances where competitors have food allergies themselves and that challenges or changes the way they cook. Can you imagine the impact having this sort of challenge on even one of these popular shows would have? Seeing chefs create spectacular dishes for even some allergies could have a serious impact.

An estimated fifteen (15) million Americans have food allergies. An estimated five point nine (5.9) million of them are children under the age of eighteen (18). It would be exciting to see that food made with allergy restrictions in mind can still get a nod of approval from world-renown chefs, and it would make children with allergies aware that they’re not alone.

It could make chefs/restaurants more open and knowledgeable about food allergies. It’s hard to eat out with allergies. A few times I’ve gotten to restaurants (that I’ve called ahead of time) and they either don’t have anything I can eat or they accidentally cook with something I can’t have. I’ll never understand how nothing can be made to accommodate me, especially when I call to inquire ahead of time. Bringing such publicity to food allergies can help change this type of restaurant experience.

It could make more people, especially relatives, aware that cooking with food restrictions is doable. That the food can still taste good. That with enough know-how, cooking for food restrictions is completely possible.

Ultimately, I hope to one day see this type of challenge on a popular cooking competition. And I believe as food allergy awareness continues to grow, the chances become more and more likely.

Sometimes cooking (and, well, eating) is cathartic. I previously described that allergy-friendly food isn’t tasteless and unimaginative. And I used a video of Gordon Ramsay to illustrate that point. I decided to continue that point slightly…by trying to cook a Gordon Ramsay signature dish: the beef wellington.

My husband had gotten me the Hell’s Kitchen Cookbook, so I was eager to try this dish. While I didn’t use filet mignon (a little pricey), I was shocked by how well attempt one went! Having watched all the seasons of Hell’s Kitchen, I fully expected this to: (a) be overcooked; (b) be raw; or (c) somehow end up in flames another way. It didn’t!

But I guess the point is this: I decided I was going to try to make beef wellington no matter how difficult it is, so I made it. I was prepared for a first attempt flop. I was prepared to have to make a different dinner on the fly. But I was going to try. Having allergies doesn’t mean that you give up on foods you’ve wanted to try or miss from before your allergy days. It means you keep working to try to make it work without the ingredients that you can’t have. We’re not limited anymore than a beginning cook would be limited in their first meals.

So try to cook something new! Something you saw on tv or online! Something you miss! Or something you’ve always wanted to try!

“Pull up a chair. Take a taste. Come join us. Life is so endlessly delicious.”
― Ruth Reichl

There are three questions I get every time I explain my allergies/lactose intolerance to someone:

What DO you eat?

But does it taste good?

What do you cook for your husband?

The answer people seem to believe the least is: “Yeah, it tastes really good!” So I thought I’d share a quick video from Gordon Ramsay. In this video, he’s cooking for someone (Hannah) who can’t have gluten or dairy.*

Her not being quite ready to have red meat aside (which is perfectly understandable), the meal received a rave review from Hannah. “I can’t believe you can put so much different flavors and tastes just into coleslaw.” Just looking at the meal, my mouth was watering. I can’t wait to try my own version!

Having food restrictions doesn’t mean that your food is tasteless. It doesn’t mean you have to eat the same thing everyday. And it doesn’t mean that you’re stuck in an uncreative, small culinary box without an escape.

Having food restrictions means that you have to be adventurous with the ingredients you can have. It means you recognize that cooking is both an art and a science. And it means that you have infinite possibilities that develop with experience and experimentation.

Happy eating!

*Now, Hannah is a vegetarian and Chef Ramsay cooks her a steak. But he did respect the reasons she was a vegetarian and discuss whether or not she was okay with trying a steak ahead of time. As such, I see absolutely nothing wrong with serving her a steak.

I’m pretty open about my food challenges at work. To explain a little: food is a big part of the culture my workplace. Going out to eat to celebrate different events, bringing food in for every birthday and holiday, Friday night socials, you name it we have food for it. Needless to say, I often either bring along my own food or choose to just enjoy the company. Now, my workplace has been wonderful about my food challenges. They’ve made every effort when we go out to eat or bring in catering to make sure I can join in. They’ve worked with me every step of the way to figure out the best way to handle my food challenges.

So why what happened yesterday surprised me, I do not know. I was taking lunch in my office and there’s a knock on my door. I let them know to come in, and in walks our legal administrator (essentially one of my bosses). She hands me this pamphlet and says that she thought I would find it useful. It was a pamphlet for AllergyEats, a website (and also an app) dedicated to helping those with allergies and intolerances find safe restaurants to eat at.

First, I wanted to give a shout out to my place of work and, specifically, my legal administrator. Thank you! I know my food challenges are often hard to understand and accommodate, but you’ve been wonderful! Even if you don’t get it, you somehow get it. And for that I can’t tell you how much I appreciate your thoughtfulness. I can’t thank you enough.

Second, if you have any food challenges, you should check out AllergyEats (https://www.allergyeats.com/). I’ve already tried its search function and can’t wait to eat at some of the new restaurants I’ve discovered in my area!

Third, AllergyEats is a peer-reviewed directory of restaurants, so please go on and rate your experiences to better aid our allergy community! The more reviews they have, the easier it will be for all of us to find delicious, accommodating places to eat.

For those of us with food allergies, Halloween can be a little difficult. So, I wanted to give a shout out to the Teal Pumpkin Project. One out of thirteen kids have food allergies. That’s potentially one out of thirteen kids that have trouble enjoying Halloween as candy is the most common treat. The Teal Pumpkin Project encourages making Halloween safe for these kids. That can be done by either adding a second bowl of non-food items (such as little toys, slinkies, stickers, etc.) or by eliminating the candy bowl all together. By putting out a teal pumpkin, you’re telling kids with allergies (and their parents) that you have allergy safe items to pass out on Halloween.

Maybe it’s because Google keeps track of what you search and then suggests similar pages but there has seemed to be more attention on allergies this week. Today, one of my co-workers also asked me about a new commercial where a teenager has a reaction. I hadn’t, but I Googled it once I was home. The Mylan commercial is shocking but, in my humble opinion, needed. (If you haven’t seen the commercial, I linked it here.)

Allergies (and intolerances) can be damaging. So it’s shocking to me how many skeptics there are. At a previous job, one of my coworkers ended up walking into a conversation where I was explaining to another coworker and friend some of my allergies and my lactose intolerance. Upon hearing that I can’t eat celery and a whole variety of fruit, his response was: “Usually if I don’t want to eat something healthy, I just tell people I don’t want it.” What do you say to that?

I thought this was an interesting article on allergy skeptics. Because they are out there. And allergy skeptics are hard enough to deal with as an adult, but as a kid counting on the adults around you the last thing you need is someone telling you you’ll be fine if there’s an allergy issue.

For the most part, I find that most people are just not well read regarding allergies. It’s not that they are intentionally disregarding what is a serious medical issue, it’s that they just don’t understand. How can this food cause a deadly reaction? Apples are touted as one of the world’s healthiest fruits/foods. They cause an anaphylactic reaction when I eat them. When you grew up hearing the first and enjoying apples, the second is just hard to comprehend.

There’s also a general lack of understanding of ingredients. Many people do not realize that butter is dairy, and others truly believe eggs are dairy. The amount of items that contain wheat, soy and dairy are staggering. I found dairy in beef bouillon cubes. There’s lactose in many beers. When you don’t need to look at the ingredient label (or do extra research on the internet), you don’t tend to. And people just don’t know and understand that you can be allergic to any food. You don’t tend to think that watermelon is anything other than water, but it can (and does for me at least) cause a reaction. That’s strange to people. It’s not that they don’t want to understand, it’s just not something that ever crossed their mind. Until faced with an allergy or someone with an allergy.

Adverts like the Mylan commercial and the use of social media to explain allergies and aid those with allergies is a huge step in allergy awareness, something I greatly support. Right now we don’t have a cure or a fix for food allergies, but allergy education can and will make life easier for those with allergies and for those who have loved ones with allergies.

Some things just mean more than words can express. Sometimes it’s the little actions that mean the most.

I know I’ve touched on how downright frightening it can be to eat over someone else’s house. “Did they check for _____?”, “Do they know to watch out for _____?”, “They have kids, are things going to get cross-contaminated?” and “Maybe it’s better if I eat ahead, just in case.” When you, even as an adult, have food allergies or intolerances, it’s scary to eat anywhere that’s not your own kitchen/house. It’s even scarier when you’re meeting the person for the first time.

I had one of those experiences earlier this week. A friend of a close friend moved to my area, we decided to get together. I invited them over or suggested a few restaurants that have been particularly allergy-accommodating. And then they invited my husband and I over with an offer to cook. With four kids, the youngest being three, they were just more comfortable cooking and then hosting us I guess. I tried to politely let them know that I had allergies and I was a difficult guest to host for a meal. All my concerns were brushed politely aside. So my husband and I agreed to go.

We got there and everything was meticulously prepared to make sure that I could eat it. I can’t have a large number of fruit, but I can have blueberries and strawberries. Those were placed on a separate plate away from the other fruit for dessert.

And then the moment that made me want to cry: as the kids washed their hands to get fruit, my host tells them “Miss Katie gets really sick if she eats all the fruits not on the plate in front of her. If you want blueberries or strawberries, get those before you touch anything else, okay?” And the kids listened.

It was heartwarming and meant more than she could ever know. I haven’t felt safe eating anywhere for a few years, and here was a stranger, hosting me for the first time and having never met me before, that just got it. Got it without fully knowing my history. Got it without going through her own allergy issues.

All I could say was “Thank you.” Because sometimes there just aren’t enough words to express how thankful you are.

Allergy and food intolerance awareness has been, thankfully, on a rise. While there are still many misconceptions or general confusion, more accommodations for allergies and intolerances are available then ever before. A specific victory for the food challenged community was the Food Allergen Labeling and Consumer Protection Act of 2004, effective January 1, 2006, requiring among other things that food labels announce if the product contains milk, eggs, fish, shellfish, tree nuts, peanuts, wheat, and soybeans.

A quieter awareness seems to be rising, however. The food production market, and larger grocery stores, now have an aisle, or aisles, specifically devoted to allergy and intolerance friendly foods. I remember first getting diagnosed. My mother and I would scout out local health food stores to try to find lactose-free products. Our grocery store had a few items, but they were scattered throughout the store and were hard to find. Certainly not what they have now. There is now an aisle devoted to these types of products, whereas only maybe five strictly lactose-free products were previously available. The nearest Trader Joes was about forty-five minutes away, though they are more conscious of food challenges.

Now, I can walk into nearly any large grocery store and at least find several products I use every day. Cooking with lactose-intolerance and allergies has become significantly easier as the food market is catching up to the problem. I cannot wait to see where this awareness takes us next!